The week starts and ends in Bogotá. From the capital the route heads onto the Boyacá plateau, which sits well above 2,500 metres. The altitude is something you'll feel during the first couple of days, even on easy terrain. The riding is described as gentle: long stretches across high farmland, short punchy hills, and a string of small colonial towns. Villa de Leyva, with its huge cobbled main square, and Paipa, known for its hot springs, are the two main overnight stops.

A typical day looks like this: breakfast at the hotel, a morning ride with a regroup and coffee stop in a village plaza, lunch on the road or at the day's destination, then a free afternoon to walk around town. The guides adjust the day to how the group is feeling. One rider who did a private trip said they 'constantly adjusted the day to match my fitness and energy levels.' With more than one guide and a support car, a split group isn't a problem.

Compared with a standard cycling holiday, the big difference is the local knowledge. Riders say the guides are closely connected to the Colombian pro scene and have coached or raced with many local riders. Past groups have crossed paths with Egan Bernal on training rides and stayed at the same hotel as the Tour Colombia peloton. Phil Gaimon, the (un)retired pro, filmed several videos riding with the team.

The guides named in rider reviews are Yves, Jose and Rodriguez. Yves leads trips and handles the planning, and riders consistently praise Jose for his encouragement on the long climbs. The company also runs cycling trips in Europe through its parent tour operator, En bici por Francia. That's where the hotel standards and the hour-by-hour planning come from.

Boyacá is the right place for this kind of trip. It's the home region of some of Colombia's best climbers, and the roads are quiet once you're out of Bogotá. The landscape is green, high and open, and the towns are small enough that a group of cyclists rolling into the square gets a friendly reception. If you want something harder, the same team runs an Alto de Letras trip (an 81 km climb with 3,800 m of elevation gain) and a route built from stages of the Tour Colombia 2.1 UCI race.

What's included

- 6 nights hotel accommodation - Professional English-speaking cycling guides - Support car(s) following the group - Routes planned kilometre by kilometre - Technical support on the road - Meals at the hotels - Transfer to Bogotá airport at the end of the trip

What's not included

- International flights to Bogotá - Travel and cycling insurance - Personal expenses and drinks - Tips for guides and drivers - Bike rental, unless arranged in advance